2000
#39,378
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 526
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Dragovich
A Slavic surname derived from the word "draga" meaning a valley or ravine.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 581 Americans carry the last name Dragovich. That puts it at #45,457 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 589,939 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dragovich surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
581
1 in 589,939
Census rank
#45,457
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
507
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 507 bearers of the surname Dragovich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 45457th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dragovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dragovich
The surname Dragovich is of Slavic origin, specifically from the Balkan region. It is derived from the Slavic word "drag," which means "dear" or "beloved." The suffix "-ovich" indicates a patronymic, meaning "son of." Therefore, the name Dragovich literally translates to "son of the dear one" or "son of the beloved."
The earliest recorded instances of the Dragovich surname can be traced back to the 15th century in the regions of present-day Serbia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. During this time, these areas were under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, and many Slavic families adopted patronymic surnames to establish their identities.
In the 16th century, the name Dragovich appeared in several historical documents, including church records and land registries. One notable figure from this era was Petar Dragovich, a Serbian merchant who lived in the city of Dubrovnik (modern-day Croatia) from 1524 to 1598. He was known for his successful trading ventures across the Mediterranean region.
In the 17th century, the Dragovich surname spread to other parts of Europe as Slavic communities migrated westward. Ivan Dragovich (1642-1712) was a Serbian Orthodox priest who settled in Vienna, Austria, and played a significant role in establishing the Serbian Orthodox Church in the city.
During the 19th century, the Dragovich name gained recognition with the birth of Milovan Dragovich (1824-1897), a Serbian painter and one of the pioneers of Serbian Romanticism. His works, which often depicted scenes from Serbian history and folklore, are considered important contributions to the country's cultural heritage.
Another notable figure was Dragovich Pavlovich (1862-1928), a Montenegrin military commander who played a crucial role in the Balkan Wars (1912-1913) and the First World War. He was celebrated for his strategic leadership and his efforts to defend Montenegrin sovereignty.
Throughout history, the Dragovich surname has been associated with various place names and variations in spelling, such as Dragović, Dragovich, and Dragowicz, reflecting the cultural and linguistic diversity of the regions where it originated and spread.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dragovich
Among Census respondents with the surname Dragovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Dragovich bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Dragovich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.7% · 460
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 22
- Two or more races4.1% · 21
- Black or African American0.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dragovich
Dragovich appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#40,494
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 540
+14 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Down 1,116 places
2020
#45,457
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 507
-33 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 4,963 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #39,378 | 526 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #40,494 | 540 | 0.18 | +14 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 1,116 places |
| 2020 | #45,457 | 507 | 0.17 | -33 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 4,963 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Dragovich surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #40,494 | #45,457 | -12.3% |
| Count | 540 | 507 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.18 | 0.17 | -5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dragovich bearers went from 540 to 507 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 4,963 positions in the national ranking, going from #40,494 to #45,457.
FAQ
Dragovich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dragovich?
Name Census estimates that about 581 living Americans carry the surname Dragovich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 589,939 residents.
How common is Dragovich?
Dragovich ranks #45,457 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.17 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 507 people with the surname Dragovich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (581), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.17 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Dragovich.
Has Dragovich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dragovich went from 540 recorded bearers to 507. That is a decrease of 33 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #40,494 to #45,457.
What does the Census say about the background of Dragovich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dragovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dragovich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.7% (460 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dragovich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.7%), Hispanic (4.3%), Two or More Races (4.1%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Dragovich (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Dragovich mean?
A Slavic surname derived from the word "draga" meaning a valley or ravine. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Dragovich (0.17 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Dragovich?
See how many people have the last name Dragovich on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.